Secrets
by Rachael-Raz
Summary: A man's life hangs in the balance. Meanwhile the Noah Percy incident must be discussed... and startling conclusions are made. Takes place after the movie. Reviews greatly appreciated, chapter 2 now up.
1. Chapter 1

The distant branches of Covington Woods were barely visible in the cold Autumn morning, icy blue fog almost obscuring their large forms. A chill wind raced by, making the mist curl and billow, and now the trees stood out considerably. The next second, they had vanished once more. The view was spectacular, eerily beautiful and haunting, accenting the simple delicacy of the village.

Unfortunately, Ivy Walker saw none of this as she walked slowly through the village, the grass crunching beneath her feet. The immense beauty of her surroundings was not lost on the young woman, however. The morning air was crisp and fresh from last night's rain, and she heard the songbirds who had not yet flown away pitching their ominous calls through the air. Suddenly she felt her walking stick hit a wooden stair. She was there. With a sigh she began climbing the stairs, the door letting out a creak as she entered.

"Hello Ivy." Alice Hunt's voice was soft, wearied from worry and many sleepless nights, and she set down a basket she had been carrying.

"Hello Mrs. Walker." Alice took her coat, and Ivy heard the shuffling of fabric as it was hanged up. "How is he?" She asked.

"There has been no change yet." The older woman began. "It is still too early to tell."

"May I see him?"

There was a pause as Alice nodded. "Yes." She said aloud. Ivy thanked her, making her way to Lucius' room. She had no need for her cane, she had memorized the route. Taking her usual seat by his side, she searched for his hand, grasping it gently, frowning at it's unnatural warmth. So not even his fever had broken yet. Running her thumb over his hand, she felt tears threatening to well up in her eyes as she tried to force the thought of him so sick from her mind, tried to instead conjure up a dream of better times.

"Do not lose hope." Alice said, entering the room with the basket. "He would not want that."

"I know." Ivy said, her voice cracking ever-so-slightly. After filling the basket with soiled dressings, Alice picked it up and left the room. Ivy never removed her sightless eyes from Lucius, watching his color wax and wane in the darkness, so very very faint.

So very, very faint.

* * *

_'Your son has made our stories real.' _Mr. Walkers words echoed through Vivian Percy's mind as she took her seat in the meeting room. Her husband squeezed her hand gently as the other elders slowly filed in, and she closed her eyes, preparing herself for the discussion that would take place shortly.

_Noah, _The woman thought gravely. _My dear Noah. Why did you do it? _Of course they would never fully know. They could only speculate at what had happened.

The door closed sharply, and Edward Walker became the sudden center of attention as he crossed the room towards them. There was silence as he remained standing, head down, gathering his thoughts.

"This... has been a difficult time." He began finally, his voice soft. "For all of us." He looked up at the still form of Alice Hunt, and then his eyes moved to Vivian and Robert Percy. He sighed, and lapsed into silence once more.

"What are we going to tell the village?" Mrs. Clack asked after almost a minute of uneasy silence. This question brought up a flurry of hushed whispers.

"We have discussed this." Edward said. "We will tell them Noah was killed by the creatures."

His proclamation was met by more hushed discussions, some agreed, some not. He looked around at the other Elders gravely. "August, Robert and I... Have studied the scene in the Quiet Room. We believe..." He hesitated, knowing the discord his words were about to create. "We believe Noah did not do these things on his own." Sure enough, shocked silence followed his words.

"We believe he had help."


	2. Chapter 2

"We believe he had help."

The Elders all looked at each other, alarmed at this statement. "What are you saying?" Mrs. Clack exclaimed. "Are you suggesting one of _us_-?"

"Surely you cannot believe someone in this village would assist in such a thing?" Someone else called.

Mr. Walker held up a hand, his civilized air never failing. "We must take into account the amount of animals contained in the room." He explained carefully. "One man, in the amount of time given, could not have skinned and placed those animals about the village alone." The Elders fell silent, the pure logic of this statement settling in. "He _must _have been assisted in some way. I am not suggesting anyone in this room was the helper, but we must speak with the others and try to discover whom it was."

The room had fallen deathly silent. Finally Mrs. Clack spoke up. "I cannot believe anyone in this village would do such a thing. Surely, Noah was the only one not present at the wedding, was he not?" There was murmured agreement here. "And if what you say is true..." She hesitated. "Can we rule out outside help? Perhaps he somehow made contact with the towns..."

"I pray that is not the case." Edward Walker replied solemnly.

* * *

Ivy Walker looked down at, but did not see Lucius Hunt lying motionless on the bed. Her hand had not left his for the whole duration of her watch, and she sighed, shaking her head, wishing something... _anything_... would happen.

"Ivy?"

The young woman looked around as her father's voice called her name. "Ivy the meeting is over. I need to speak with you." He sounded tense, weary. She turned back to Lucius, biting her lip. "Alice is here, she will watch over him." Edward said gently.

Ivy nodded, tearing herself from her love's side and following her father back to their own house.

"Ivy... the _creature _that... attacked you in the woods..." Edward hesitated, looking down at his daughter, the expression on her face curious, yet otherwise unreadable. "That... was not a creature."

"Then what was it?" Ivy asked softly, as if she had been expecting his words, and now her face was filled with dread.

"It was Noah."

She gasped, her hands covering her mouth, shaking her head mutely. Edward kneeled beside her, gathering her in his arms. "Oh Ivy I am sorry." He said as the tears rolled off her face. "He... found one of our spare suits and escaped with it. I am sorry."

Ivy clung to him, crying into his shoulder, feeling the bitter tears stinging her eyes. She felt sick, riddled with guilt and shame. _Oh Noah... my friend Noah... _She thought she hated him for what he had done to Lucius, but in fact she had pitied him. She sympathized with the man, his inability to understand what was going on between them. And now he was dead.

And it was her fault.


End file.
